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Selected Shorts: Readers & Writers
Recorded live at Peter Norton Symphony Space in New York City and at venues across the United States, these audio anthologies feature short stories from the Selected Shorts program that airs on public radio nationwide. More than 300,000 listeners tune in to this offering weekly to hear some of their favorite tales read aloud by distinguished actors. Full of funny, fantastical, and poignant stories about people with unique and passionate connections to the written word, this set will have a particular resonance with those who favor books. Among the stories are Ray Bradbury's "Exchange," read by Rochelle Oliver; Walter R. Brooks' "Ed Has His Mind Improved," read by Tony Roberts; Italo Calvino's "The Adventure of a Reader," translated by William Weaver and read by John Shea; Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model," read by Blair Brown; Adam Haslett's "Notes to My Biographer," read by Isaiah Sheffer; Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile," read by Christina Pickles; and Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens," read by Leonard Nimoy.
1 pages, Audio CD
First published October 1, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
April 22, 2013
**** Ray Bradbury's "Exchange," read by Rochelle Oliver
A major returns to his childhood library on his way to report to war duty.
**** Walter R. Brooks' "Ed Has His Mind Improved," read by Tony Roberts
Story of Wilbur Pope's talking horse, Ed, who learns to read.
*** Italo Calvino's "The Adventures of a Reader," translated by William Weaver and read by John Shea
Reader meets a woman at the beach.
**** Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model," read by Blair Brown
Spunky main character answers writers' questions at first
** Adam Haslett's "Notes to My Biographer," read by Isaiah Sheffer
Manic main character won't take his meds.
**** Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile," read by Christina Pickles
Main character's life is changed by encounters with a bookmobile that contains everything she ever read.
**** Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens," read by Leonard Nimoy
Explorer is helped by a man who wants him to stay to read Dickens aloud.
A major returns to his childhood library on his way to report to war duty.
**** Walter R. Brooks' "Ed Has His Mind Improved," read by Tony Roberts
Story of Wilbur Pope's talking horse, Ed, who learns to read.
*** Italo Calvino's "The Adventures of a Reader," translated by William Weaver and read by John Shea
Reader meets a woman at the beach.
**** Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model," read by Blair Brown
Spunky main character answers writers' questions at first
** Adam Haslett's "Notes to My Biographer," read by Isaiah Sheffer
Manic main character won't take his meds.
**** Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile," read by Christina Pickles
Main character's life is changed by encounters with a bookmobile that contains everything she ever read.
**** Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens," read by Leonard Nimoy
Explorer is helped by a man who wants him to stay to read Dickens aloud.
January 3, 2016
Walter R. Brooks' "Ed Has His Mind Improved" - How Ed... a talking horse... became a voracious reader of adventure tales and hardboiled detective stories. (2 stars)
Italo Calvino's "The Adventure of a Reader" - A man tries to make the most of his beach holiday by reading and making love at the same time. (3 stars)
Adam Haslett's "Notes to My Biographer" - A long-lost father reviews his life on a trip to reconnect with his troubled son. (4 stars)
Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens" - A dark, vintage Evelyn Waugh tickler about a stranded jungle explorer forced to read Dickens aloud. (3 stars)
Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model" - What does it mean to be a woman? A group of writers study their subject. (4 stars)
Ray Bradbury's "Exchange" - A young soldier about to ship out pays a final visit to his childhood library. (3 stars)
Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile" - An obsession with a mysterious magical bookmobile. (3 stars)
Italo Calvino's "The Adventure of a Reader" - A man tries to make the most of his beach holiday by reading and making love at the same time. (3 stars)
Adam Haslett's "Notes to My Biographer" - A long-lost father reviews his life on a trip to reconnect with his troubled son. (4 stars)
Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens" - A dark, vintage Evelyn Waugh tickler about a stranded jungle explorer forced to read Dickens aloud. (3 stars)
Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model" - What does it mean to be a woman? A group of writers study their subject. (4 stars)
Ray Bradbury's "Exchange" - A young soldier about to ship out pays a final visit to his childhood library. (3 stars)
Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile" - An obsession with a mysterious magical bookmobile. (3 stars)
August 20, 2019
I cannot recommend these BOCDs highly enough. Hearing great actors read great stories in front of a live audience makes the commute joyous. This one in particular had a theme I loved. Seek them out at your local library (you can do that through Goodreads!)
December 10, 2025
It seems a lovely series of readings, though I was disappointed by many of the stories, which seemed to be old-fashioned in their pacing and misogyny.
Ray Bradbury's "Exchange," was oddly tedious to me, for all I know it was meant to be wonderful. I liked it, but it seemed to go on too long.
Walter R. Brooks' "Ed Has His Mind Improved," was a delight. I suppose the TV series "Mr. Ed" is based on this guy's short fiction. Good plot. Terrible female characters.
"The Man Who Liked Dickens," felt very very old-fashioned, but I enjoyed hearing it read by Leonard Nimoy, for all that its a story without a twist. (Chekov would have words about that shotgun.)
I got this because I wanted to find something in Audio by Italo Calvino, but his "The Adventure of a Reader," translated by William Weaver, while full of his signature beautiful descriptive images, is one of the worst toward women. "The tanned woman" is more an object than anything, and the main character (I charitably hope it is just the character) actually says something like "She opened her mouth and of course it was something idiotic because she's a woman."
Fortunately, hard on that came Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model," which was a DELIGHT. It's actually about the way the previous stories all depicted women.
Yes, exactly, Ms. Giles. You hit the nail on the head. Also, as it ends with an alien, I'm counting this one as science fiction.
The last story is Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile," which had a marvelous, magical yet melancholic feel that was perfect for ending on.
Ray Bradbury's "Exchange," was oddly tedious to me, for all I know it was meant to be wonderful. I liked it, but it seemed to go on too long.
Walter R. Brooks' "Ed Has His Mind Improved," was a delight. I suppose the TV series "Mr. Ed" is based on this guy's short fiction. Good plot. Terrible female characters.
"The Man Who Liked Dickens," felt very very old-fashioned, but I enjoyed hearing it read by Leonard Nimoy, for all that its a story without a twist. (Chekov would have words about that shotgun.)
I got this because I wanted to find something in Audio by Italo Calvino, but his "The Adventure of a Reader," translated by William Weaver, while full of his signature beautiful descriptive images, is one of the worst toward women. "The tanned woman" is more an object than anything, and the main character (I charitably hope it is just the character) actually says something like "She opened her mouth and of course it was something idiotic because she's a woman."
Fortunately, hard on that came Molly Giles' "The Writers' Model," which was a DELIGHT. It's actually about the way the previous stories all depicted women.
Yes, exactly, Ms. Giles. You hit the nail on the head. Also, as it ends with an alien, I'm counting this one as science fiction.
The last story is Audrey Niffenegger's "The Night Bookmobile," which had a marvelous, magical yet melancholic feel that was perfect for ending on.
September 22, 2021
3.5 stars. I always enjoy Selected Shorts, short stories often read by celebrity narrators. I listened to these while running errands, all on the theme of reading and writing—mostly reading.
“Ed Has His Mind Improved” by Walter R. Brooks, read by Tony Roberts - I really enjoyed this story about a talking horse who learn to read, and likes the “low brow” stuff. It seems to be something of a humorous, edgy take on the TV show Mr. Ed. ****
“The Adventure of a Reader” by Italo Calvino, read by John Shea - solid and somewhat humorous story about a man who picks up a woman on the beach, but is conflicted because he really wants to keep reading his book. ***
“Notes to My Biographer” by Adam Haslett, read by Isaiah Sheffer - this story of a self+absorbed man imposing on his children is probably a ***, it was engaging enough. But the narrator kept drastically altering his volume. I listened to this while driving,band had to turn the volume up really high to hear him, and the next line he would shout, Then he’d almost whisper, then shout. Basically ruined the story. **
“The Man Who Liked Dickens” by Evelyn Waugh, read by Leonard Nimoy - a strong and suspenseful historical story about an explorer who is saved by a man who live in a remote area of Brazil, only to become stuck there so he can read Dickens novels to his savior. It’s something of a psychological thriller, well-crafted, and of course Nimoy did an excellent job with the narration. ***1/2
“The Writer’s Model” by Molly Giles, read by Blair Brown - humorous and very brief story on sexism in literature, about a woman who gets a job answering the questions of a bunch of male writers. ***
“Exchange” by Ray Bradbury, read by Rochelle Oliver - Okay story, a bit of a love story to librarians. Being Bradbury, I was hoping for some sort of twist, but if there was one, I missed it. ***
“The Night Bookmobile” by Audrey Niffenegger, read by Christina Pickles - A perfect fantasy story for avid readers. I want to listen to this one again. ****
“Ed Has His Mind Improved” by Walter R. Brooks, read by Tony Roberts - I really enjoyed this story about a talking horse who learn to read, and likes the “low brow” stuff. It seems to be something of a humorous, edgy take on the TV show Mr. Ed. ****
“The Adventure of a Reader” by Italo Calvino, read by John Shea - solid and somewhat humorous story about a man who picks up a woman on the beach, but is conflicted because he really wants to keep reading his book. ***
“Notes to My Biographer” by Adam Haslett, read by Isaiah Sheffer - this story of a self+absorbed man imposing on his children is probably a ***, it was engaging enough. But the narrator kept drastically altering his volume. I listened to this while driving,band had to turn the volume up really high to hear him, and the next line he would shout, Then he’d almost whisper, then shout. Basically ruined the story. **
“The Man Who Liked Dickens” by Evelyn Waugh, read by Leonard Nimoy - a strong and suspenseful historical story about an explorer who is saved by a man who live in a remote area of Brazil, only to become stuck there so he can read Dickens novels to his savior. It’s something of a psychological thriller, well-crafted, and of course Nimoy did an excellent job with the narration. ***1/2
“The Writer’s Model” by Molly Giles, read by Blair Brown - humorous and very brief story on sexism in literature, about a woman who gets a job answering the questions of a bunch of male writers. ***
“Exchange” by Ray Bradbury, read by Rochelle Oliver - Okay story, a bit of a love story to librarians. Being Bradbury, I was hoping for some sort of twist, but if there was one, I missed it. ***
“The Night Bookmobile” by Audrey Niffenegger, read by Christina Pickles - A perfect fantasy story for avid readers. I want to listen to this one again. ****
December 29, 2021
I really enjoyed listening to these short stories by some amazing writers. The theme of course of this collection is writers and readers and it's a wonderful collection which introduced to me some authors I was unfamiliar with, i.e.. Molly Giles, Audrey Niffenegger and Adam Haslett.
One criticism I have though is for the publishers who do not include a list of the the authors and their short stories when you are listening to the the Audible version. Since there are only 7 chapters this doesn't seem too difficult for Symphony Space to have done this for listeners. It's annoying to go to the "Chapters" tab and simply see listed Chapters 1,2,3,4,5,6,7.
Ch. 1 Ed Has His Mind Improved by Walter R. Brooks
Ch. 2 The Adventure of a Reader by Italo Calvino
Ch.3 Notes to my Biographer by Adam Haslett
Ch. 4 The Man Who Liked Dickens by Evelyn Waugh
Ch. 5 The Writer's Model by Molly Giles
Ch. 6 Exchange by Ray Bradbury
Ch. 7 The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
The collection, I found to be quite enjoyable and like most good short stories stick with you longer than it took to read or listen to the story. There are some wonderful narrators too - Tony Roberts, Leonard Nemoy, Christina Pickles, Blair Brown, John Shea and Isaiah Sheffer. I highly recommend to fans of this genre.
One criticism I have though is for the publishers who do not include a list of the the authors and their short stories when you are listening to the the Audible version. Since there are only 7 chapters this doesn't seem too difficult for Symphony Space to have done this for listeners. It's annoying to go to the "Chapters" tab and simply see listed Chapters 1,2,3,4,5,6,7.
Ch. 1 Ed Has His Mind Improved by Walter R. Brooks
Ch. 2 The Adventure of a Reader by Italo Calvino
Ch.3 Notes to my Biographer by Adam Haslett
Ch. 4 The Man Who Liked Dickens by Evelyn Waugh
Ch. 5 The Writer's Model by Molly Giles
Ch. 6 Exchange by Ray Bradbury
Ch. 7 The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
The collection, I found to be quite enjoyable and like most good short stories stick with you longer than it took to read or listen to the story. There are some wonderful narrators too - Tony Roberts, Leonard Nemoy, Christina Pickles, Blair Brown, John Shea and Isaiah Sheffer. I highly recommend to fans of this genre.
March 11, 2022
A fun selection of short stories performed by leading actors in front of a live audience. I doubt I would have known about any of these stories without this audiobook so I’m glad I found it. Plus, the length of the stories made them perfect to listen to in my lunchbreak.
There are some random choices in the selection which includes comedy, horror, modernist, and sentimental pieces. The audience reactions added to my enjoyment, especially their laughter at some of the wry or subtle jokes. My favourite pieces from the collection were Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens," read brilliantly by Leonard Nimoy and Italo Calvino's "The Adventures of a Reader," read hilariously by John Shea.
There are some random choices in the selection which includes comedy, horror, modernist, and sentimental pieces. The audience reactions added to my enjoyment, especially their laughter at some of the wry or subtle jokes. My favourite pieces from the collection were Evelyn Waugh's "The Man Who Liked Dickens," read brilliantly by Leonard Nimoy and Italo Calvino's "The Adventures of a Reader," read hilariously by John Shea.
November 19, 2025
Great readers and engaging stories. I skipped one that wasn't PG due to others being around me while I was listening. My favorites were the first one and the Evelyn Waugh story, "The Man Who Like Dickens". Well done!
August 16, 2017
Short stories about reading and writing, read aloud, including one of my favorite writers: Italo Calvino.
October 17, 2018
Excellent compilation of short stories. My favorite is The Night Bookmobile. Looking forward to re-reading (not listening) to all these wonderfully written works.
April 11, 2021
A delightful way to spend a Saturday afternoon in bed. Amusing stories about books and writing.
October 14, 2023
I like that the audience’s laughter was also recorded.
January 13, 2025
This collection was bound to be great, given the theme. I was not disappointed. My favourite was Italo Calvino’s ‘The adventure of a reader’. I smile
Just remembering it. So lovely and funny.
Just remembering it. So lovely and funny.
September 4, 2013
I loved it and would highly recommend this collection!
Ed Has His Mind Improved by Walter R. Brooks is Mr. Ed the TV show! What a joy and delight to read! Smart. Clever. Fun.
The Adventure of a Reader by Italo Calvinos This was fun, playful, and terrifically NOT sexy. :)
Notes to My Biographer by Adam Haslett. This might be my favorite story of the bunch. Smart, funny, clever. I want to write this well!
The Man Who Liked Dickens by Evely Waugh was alright.
The Writers' Model by Molly Giles was smart and strong and wonderfully feminine. Really terrific.
Exchange by Ray Bradbury was sweet. That's the word: sweet.
The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger Meh, I liked this better the first time around.
Ed Has His Mind Improved by Walter R. Brooks is Mr. Ed the TV show! What a joy and delight to read! Smart. Clever. Fun.
The Adventure of a Reader by Italo Calvinos This was fun, playful, and terrifically NOT sexy. :)
Notes to My Biographer by Adam Haslett. This might be my favorite story of the bunch. Smart, funny, clever. I want to write this well!
The Man Who Liked Dickens by Evely Waugh was alright.
The Writers' Model by Molly Giles was smart and strong and wonderfully feminine. Really terrific.
Exchange by Ray Bradbury was sweet. That's the word: sweet.
The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger Meh, I liked this better the first time around.
Read
May 13, 2013This was great.
Highly recommend this as an audio book. A great variety of short stories about reading.
This contains a real surprise for anyone who enjoyed(?)early 1960 sitcoms with the original story of Mr Ed (he was a racier horse than the plodder we saw)
Stories by Italo Calvino,Audrey Niffenegger, Ray Bradbury, Evelyn Waugh etc. all well read.
Highly recommend this as an audio book. A great variety of short stories about reading.
This contains a real surprise for anyone who enjoyed(?)early 1960 sitcoms with the original story of Mr Ed (he was a racier horse than the plodder we saw)
Stories by Italo Calvino,Audrey Niffenegger, Ray Bradbury, Evelyn Waugh etc. all well read.
January 19, 2011
Great audiobook for book nerds.
April 29, 2012
A good audio collection of short stories about readers and writers. I especially liked "The Night Bookmobile" by Audrey, "Exchange" by Ray Bradbury, and "The Writer's Model" by Molly Giles.
April 29, 2016
This might be the most enjoyable collection of short stories I have ever read.
March 30, 2014
Calvino & Bradbury are where it's at.
April 25, 2014
What a gem and complete delight!
December 22, 2018
Ed Has His Mind Improved by Walter R. Brooks
I love a good story about talking animals, and nothing is quite as enjoyable as a Horse because of the natural and beautiful relationship one can have with a Human. This is a pleasant and enjoyable story of a talking horse who learns to read and the misadventures that could potentially lead to.
The Adventures of a Reader by Italo Calvino
The distractions of reading! How one man goes from reading a book to which he was enjoying immensely to meeting, flirting with, kissing, and having sex with a woman he has just met takes this short story in a comedic and romantic spin, all while just trying to finish the next page.
Notes to My Biographer by Adam Haslet
A touching story of a man who struggles with mental illness and how it has affected his family. It's difficult, endearing, and you really feel for each character as they have to go on the journey of this short story.
The Man Who Liked Dickens by Evelyn Waugh
This story starts like any other and slowly begins to become unsettling and suspicious, then right at the end pure chilling horror. There is no monster or wild animal, only a lonely man who wants someone to read to him and is willing to hold that person captive to accomplish that goal.
I like to think our protagonist hero manages to overpower and outwit the elderly settler, and make some kind of bold and wild escape out of the Amazon and back to civilization, reunite with his wife and write a book about his chilling tale, it feels like this is only the build up of the story, and there should me much more to come.
The Writer's Model by Molly Giles
This book was rather enjoyable, the protagonist is basic and unassuming. She does everything without a care in the world all with the knowledge that she is contributing to American Literature as advertised in the article she read. It was interesting to see how she went on this journey and what became of all the questions and research she did with all of these writers.
Exchange by Ray Bradbury
A Charming story of a young boy who comes to the library voraciously and grows up to become a military man and up to the rank of a Captain. He arrives back to him hometown to find everything changed and different, his friends gone, and he is once again alone, except for his library and librarian, who after some time came to remember him and they spent a night reliving his volumes of readings. A connection is rekindled and they find meaning in each other again.
The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
This book was a great magical book lovers dream let personal tragedy. I can understand the wonder and splendor of a mobile library that catalogs all the books, magazine, and documents you've ever read, run by a deceased book lover who's own personal library has ended. It's a tragic twist and a somber reflection on how we can find something we love so much and let it become the end of our living lives. I feel sorrow for this protagonist in all her life losses, and am saddened that she ended her life, it brings her to her new job as the readers and listeners learn that she is telling this story from beyond the grave, that she is already deceased and now herself a mobile library driver for a young girl right at the beginning of her own library and reading journey. She will be well taken care of.
The one thing I am off put about is how beautiful this story makes the "after" of a suicide appear, and making it seem like it is the answer to find a happiness not available in living life. Now I realize this is a fiction and fantastical creation of the author's mind, but perhaps someone else who is suffering or struggling may not see it that way and be encouraged to enact a similar result in hopes of finding that library.
All in all this was a great collection of stories and I was entertained and taken to many locations and met several characters for these few hours.
I love a good story about talking animals, and nothing is quite as enjoyable as a Horse because of the natural and beautiful relationship one can have with a Human. This is a pleasant and enjoyable story of a talking horse who learns to read and the misadventures that could potentially lead to.
The Adventures of a Reader by Italo Calvino
The distractions of reading! How one man goes from reading a book to which he was enjoying immensely to meeting, flirting with, kissing, and having sex with a woman he has just met takes this short story in a comedic and romantic spin, all while just trying to finish the next page.
Notes to My Biographer by Adam Haslet
A touching story of a man who struggles with mental illness and how it has affected his family. It's difficult, endearing, and you really feel for each character as they have to go on the journey of this short story.
The Man Who Liked Dickens by Evelyn Waugh
This story starts like any other and slowly begins to become unsettling and suspicious, then right at the end pure chilling horror. There is no monster or wild animal, only a lonely man who wants someone to read to him and is willing to hold that person captive to accomplish that goal.
I like to think our protagonist hero manages to overpower and outwit the elderly settler, and make some kind of bold and wild escape out of the Amazon and back to civilization, reunite with his wife and write a book about his chilling tale, it feels like this is only the build up of the story, and there should me much more to come.
The Writer's Model by Molly Giles
This book was rather enjoyable, the protagonist is basic and unassuming. She does everything without a care in the world all with the knowledge that she is contributing to American Literature as advertised in the article she read. It was interesting to see how she went on this journey and what became of all the questions and research she did with all of these writers.
Exchange by Ray Bradbury
A Charming story of a young boy who comes to the library voraciously and grows up to become a military man and up to the rank of a Captain. He arrives back to him hometown to find everything changed and different, his friends gone, and he is once again alone, except for his library and librarian, who after some time came to remember him and they spent a night reliving his volumes of readings. A connection is rekindled and they find meaning in each other again.
The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
This book was a great magical book lovers dream let personal tragedy. I can understand the wonder and splendor of a mobile library that catalogs all the books, magazine, and documents you've ever read, run by a deceased book lover who's own personal library has ended. It's a tragic twist and a somber reflection on how we can find something we love so much and let it become the end of our living lives. I feel sorrow for this protagonist in all her life losses, and am saddened that she ended her life, it brings her to her new job as the readers and listeners learn that she is telling this story from beyond the grave, that she is already deceased and now herself a mobile library driver for a young girl right at the beginning of her own library and reading journey. She will be well taken care of.
The one thing I am off put about is how beautiful this story makes the "after" of a suicide appear, and making it seem like it is the answer to find a happiness not available in living life. Now I realize this is a fiction and fantastical creation of the author's mind, but perhaps someone else who is suffering or struggling may not see it that way and be encouraged to enact a similar result in hopes of finding that library.
All in all this was a great collection of stories and I was entertained and taken to many locations and met several characters for these few hours.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews